Reverie

Lia Rechdan

The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism

Aspen walked through the school halls that she had grown so accustomed to. The walls held bulletin boards covered with upcoming events and recent exam scores from the week prior. A couple of familiar faces walked past as Aspen clutched her book closer to her chest and held onto her messenger bag ' s strap. A couple of whispers were thrown about. They were far too quiet for Aspen to make out, but she could feel their gazes on her. With that discomfort on her consciousness, she hurried her pace back to her room.

***** Aspen pulled out a small brass key from her skirt pocket before knocking softly on the wooden door, “Can I come in?” Cedar ’ s bright voice called back, “Yeah, jeez, you ’ re late. ” Aspen shook her head, a smile beginning to creep on her face as she opened the twins ’ dorm room door. The room was distinctive to the two different personalities that slept there. The left side of the room looked to be less lived in, the coverings on the bed were bleak, and the desk across from it was piled high with notebooks, textbooks, loose-leaf paper, and blue, red, and black pens. Despite the seemingly put-together nature, everything was messy and scattered, a sort of organized chaos. The right side of the room, on the other hand, was actual chaos. There were clothes strewn throughout the room, which unmistakably have a point of origin. Along the wall was a large watercolor painting against school regulations, but by pulling some strings, she got away with a minor scolding from Blackstaff. The painting itself held various shades of reds, browns, and blacks, contrasting Cedar ’ s bright and neutral demeanor. The swirls on the canvas seemed to bleed into each other, interwoven with care, Seeming to pull you in from its core, ripping you into different directions. She also had an easel at the foot of her bed; lined with parchment to give a layer of protection from the paint that also sat around the legs of the easel. A pair of arms wrapped around Aspen ’ s neck from behind, snapping her out of her thoughts. “Where have you been? I’ ve been so lonely. ”

Aspen let out a small laugh, tossing her books to the side and landing on her bed, a few of them bouncing off and tumbling to the ground.

The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism

“Stayed a bit after, found a lead on my magic…. ” She trails off. “And? It feels like there ’ s more to the story. ” “I still need a name for it, don ’t I?” Aspen scratches her chin. “You ’ re avoiding the question, ” Cedar teased, slightly sticking out her tongue. “ ...I lost track of time!… And I got kicked out for the professor ’ s next class. ” “There it is!” Cedar stuck her tongue out and lightly tapped Aspen ’ s head, “You need to stop getting so absorbed in work. ” She let go of her sister and moved to stand in front of her, doing a little dance as she did so, “Live a little. ” “I- You know I can ’t, ” Aspen walked over to the books that fell over onto the ground and placed them back onto the bed. Aspen sat on the edge of the bed, tousling her red locks, “I get why I had to leave, but it was so damn annoying. I was onto something-and now I lost that train of thought. ” Cedar walked over to her sister, pushing the books further over to sit down, resting her head on her shoulder, “You ’ll find it eventually if you found it once, you can do it again, but please take breaks...you need it...you really do, y ’know that right?” This brought Aspen back, it wasn ’t the first time she ’ s heard this or had a conversation akin to this, and it most certainly would not be the last. Past conversations with her sister echoed in her head: “Aspen, it’ s been hours;you needto sleep. Give ita breakand come backto itwitha clear head. ” “Haveyou eaten today?You can ’ tfocus on an empty stomach. C’ mon!Let’ sgogetsomething to eat. ” “Oh, thereyou are!I’ ve been looking foryou for hours, andIfind you in the hidden corners ofthe library…oh?You didn ’ tknow thatmuch timepassed?Let’ sgo backto our room, you ’ ve been coopedup here long enough. ” Aspen shook her head, taking a moment to recollect herself before letting out a sigh, “Maybe later. Gotta go visit mom. ” Cedar ’ s body tensed up, “Oh…. ” She cleared her throat, “I know you don ’t like visiting her, but uh, if you want to visit her...I think she ’d appreciate that. ” Cedar jumped up from her spot and headed over to her easel, “I’d love to, but haha gotta paint, see taking breaks from my own magic does

The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism